Is it inappropriate or genius? Or maybe it's both. David S. Palmer used
a torch to create portraits of people killed by a bullet, on a canvas
of bullet shells casings.

David wrote:

The materials I have chosen to use serve my purpose because of
the blatant and emotionally charged response they evoke. These mediums
already have a strong mental imagery that is attached to them. Around
the world they are still used to either help build dreams or destroy
the dreamers. My hope is that you will feel the agony and then see the
miracles that can arise from choosing to create rather than destroy.

His painting of John Lennon shown above, called "Walking in the
Light," used 8,000 spent shell casings. David has also drawn Tupac
Shakur, Abraham Lincoln, and John F. Kennedy - all killed by gunfire.

at the risk of being pedantic, "bullet shells" isn't really a thing. ammunition has two main parts: the bullet itself, and the casing (aka "cartridge casing", and colloquially known as "brass" or "shell"), which holds the bullet, primer and powder. a complete unit of ammunition is properly called a "cartridge".

i hate to sound nitpicky, but this subject is one of my pet peeves. but i figure it's Neatorama and we're all here to learn stuff!

as for the portraits themselves, i think they're pretty cool and make a strong statement!